The horse rescuer

Kristen Schultz in her Princeton stable with her 18-year-old Saddlebred horse, Friendly. Phyllis Booth photo Kristen Schulz has discovered a way to fulfill her goal to have horses, teach riding and at the same time save the animals from possible slaughter.

Kristen has three horses and one pony that all came from the Saddlebred Rescue, Inc., a non-profit charity organization formed to prevent the slaughter of Saddlebred horses and find them homes.

The organization has stables in Georgia and New Jersey, and many of the Saddlebred/ Standardbreds come from the Amish area in Pennsylvania.

"Once they can no longer do 17 miles a day on a hot day, they get sent to the auction in New Holland," says Kristen.

Many horse owners send their animals off to auction, believing the animals will find new homes.

But that isn't always the case. Many Saddlebreds as well as other horses, end up on a truck, bound for slaughter. Any horse is fair game - pregnant mares, foals, geldings, young and old horses, show horses or pleasure horses. The market is lucrative: processed packaged horsemeat sells for upwards of $15 per pound overseas, according to Saddlebred Rescue.

Kristen has always loved horses. Growing up she played with plastic horses and fantasized about having her own some day. She owned horses before moving to Princeton in 1997, then took time out to have her daughter, Johnna. About a year ago she decided she'd like to get back into having horses and giving riding lessons.

"At the time I didn't know anything about horse rescue organizations," says Kristen. "I also didn't have a lot of money to buy lesson horses, so I knew I'd have to keep my eyes open for a deal."

While on the Web site Trot.org, she came across a section about a rescue group dedicated to Saddlebreds.

"The section contained detailed descriptions about the horses, so I thought if a good one came along I'd go for it and keep it with a friend," says Kristen.

"There was the framework of a barn on the [Princeton] property when we bought it and my step-dad did all the work putting in stalls, floors and a loft." The spotless barn has four stalls now and she would like to add two more.

"I started really getting involved with the rescue site, and found 18-year-old Friendly, a horse that had just what I was looking for," Kristen says.

She filled out the adoption form, provided references and paid the $35 fee.

"You tell them exactly what you're looking for and they match you to a horse," says Kristen.

Once a horse is found and ready to go, the adoption fee runs between $650-$850, plus the cost of getting the horse delivered to your home. Friendly was boarded with a friend for almost a year before coming home to Princeton.

"He was with the Amish for a long time and drives beautifully. You couldn't ask for a safer driving horse," she says. "Staff at the rescue barn really work with the horses, test ride them and are very careful to match a home with a horse. They evaluate the horse and tell you

whether it will walk, trot, how it cross ties, how it mounts, stays on the rail, everything. so you can feel very comfortable about the animal."

Saddlebred Rescue, Inc.

earned the United States Equestrian

MAINTENANCE

Federation's "Heroes for

Horses" award for demonstrating

Screened

Loam & an unwavering commitment

Compost

to the protection and welfare of

horses. MULCH Not one to have a lone horse, Kristen went looking again and found General- not a rescue per se, but a horse that wasn't suited for Amish buggy work.

An individual at the auction keeps an eye out for horses that are only being bid on by a "kill bidder" to be sent to slaughter, says Kristen. He buys the horse and sends it to the Rescue.

That was the case with 9-year-old General, who was bought for buggy pulling. When that didn't work out, General was brought to the Rescue.

"The Rescue does pass on a horse that looks like it's on its last legs, but if it's still useful they will save it," says Kristen.

Ten-year-old Rita, another Saddlebred, came to Kristen's barn to provide company to Friendly and General when one of them was being used. "Two is hard when you're working with one, they don't want to leave each other," Kristen says.

Rita will be placed in her permanent home at the end of August. The horse has some joint calcification and was abused, says Kristen. "She was a basket case when she came here and very nervous. Within a few weeks she was 75 percent better and now she's very good," she says.

Kristen has ridden for years at a saddleseat barn in Richmond, N.H. where she earned her instructor's license. Her friend is a trainer and she's still learning through clinics and books.

Kristen's most recent acquisition is 22- year-old Suzanna, a Saddlebred pony that was a brood mare from a breeding farm that was sent to the auction. "I went to New Jersey to ride her to make sure she'd be good as a lesson horse," she says.

Kristen has riding-lesson openings for both adults and kids ages seven and up at Gaitway Farm in Princeton. She can be reached at (978) 464-0446 and her Web site is http://mysite. verizon.net/gaitway/gaitwayfarm.

She's certified as an instructor in saddleseat and teaches all aspects of caring for horses.

"I'm very involved with the Saddlebred Rescue effort. It saves useful horses from slaughter and meets the need for affordable lesson horses," she says. "I just love the idea all my horses are rescue horses and they all have good stories behind them.